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77? e> Courtsfjip 

of- 

Miles Standisf) 



The Courtship of 
Miles Standish 



BY 



HENRY W. LONGFELLOW 

Adapted for Ton. no- Readers 



BY 



VIRGINIA HEATH 






Copyright, 1904 

L. H. NELSON COMPANY 

PORTLAND. MAINE 



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XXc, Noi I 

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|ohn Aldeii and Priscilla 



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The Courtship of Miles Standish 




N the Old Colony days, in Plymouth the land of the Pilgrims, 
To and tro in a room ui his simple and primiti\'e dwelling, 
Clad in doublet and hose, and hoots of Cordovan leather. 
Strode, with a martial air, Miles Standish the Puritan Captain. 
Buried in thought he seemed, with his hands behind liim, and pausing 
Ever and anon to behold his glittering weapons ot warfare, 
Hanging in shining array along the walls ot the chamber,- — 
Cutlass and corselet ot steel, and his trusty sword of Damascus, 
Curved at the point and inscribed with its niystical Arabic sentence, 
While underneath, in a corner, were towluiir-piece, musket, and matchlock. 
Short of stature he was, but strongly built and athletic, 
Broad in the shoulders, cieep-chested, with muscles and sinews ot iron; 
Brown as a nut was his face, but his russet beard was already 
Flaked with patches ot snow, as hedges sometimes in November. 
Near him was seated John Alden, his friend, and household companion. 
Writing with diligent speed at a table of pine by the window; 
Fair-haired, azure-eyed, with delicate Saxon complexion, 



(3) 



THE C O LT R T S H I P OF MILES S T A N D I S 1 1 

Youngest of all was he of the men who came in the May Flower. 

Suddenly breaking the silence, the diligent scribe interrupting, 
Spake, in the pride of his heart. Miles Standish the Captain of Plymouth. 
" Look at these arms," he said, " the warlike weapons that hang here. 
See, how bright they are burnished, as if in an arsenal hanging; 
That is because I have done it myself, and not left it to others. 
Serve yourself, would you be well served, is an excellent adage ; 
So I take care ot my arms, as you of your pens and vour inkhorn. 
Then, too, there are my soldiers, my great, invincible armv. 
Twelve men, all equipped, having each his rest and his matchlock, 
Eighteen shillings a month, together with diet and pillage, 
And, like Ca-sar, I know the name of each of mv soldiers!" 
This he said with a smile, that danced in his eves, as the sunbeams 
Dance on the waves of the sea, and vanish again in a moment. 
Over his countenarure flitted a shadow like those on the landscape, 
Gloom intermingled with light; and his voice was subdued with emotion. 
Tenderness, pity, regret, as after a pause he proceeded ■ 
"Yonder there, on the hill by the sea, lies buried Rose Standish ; 
Beautiful rose ot love, that bloomed for me in' the wayside 1 
She was the first to die of all who came in the ^Lly Flower! 
Green above her is growing the field of wheat we have sown there, 
Better to hide from the Indian scouts the graves of our people. 
Lest they should count them and see how many alreaily ha\'e perished ! " 
Sadly his hice he averted, and strode up and down, and was thou^htful. 
Nothing was heard in the room but the hurrying pen of the stripling. 
Or an occasional sigh from the laborinij; heart of the Captain, 
Reading the marvellous words and achievements of Julius Ca-sar. 
After a while he exclaimed, as he smote with his hand, palm downwards, 

(4) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 




Copyright, 1891, A. S. Burbank, Plymouth, Ma 



Plymouth in 1622. 



Heavily on the page: "A wonderful man was this Ca-sar ! 

You are a writer, and I am a fighter, but here is a fellow 

Who could both write and fight, and in both was equally skilful ! " 

Truly a wonderful man was Caius Julius Ca;sar ! 

Now, do you know what he did on a certain occasion in Flanders, 

When the rear-guard of his army retreated, the front giving way too, 

And the immortal Twelfth Legion was crowded so closely together 

There was no room for their swords ? Why, he seized a shield from a soldier, 

Put himself straight at the head of his troops, and commanded the captains, 

Calling on each by his name, to order forward the ensigns ; 

Then to widen the ranks, and give more room for their weapons; 

So he won the day, the battle of something-or-other. 

That's what I always say; if you wish a thing to be well done, 

(5) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 

^ ou must do it yourself, you must not leave it to othei's ! 

All was silent again ; the Captain continued his reading. 

Nothing was heard in the room but the hurrying jicn of the stripling 

Writing epistles important to go next day by the May Flower, 

Filled with the name and the fame of the Puritan maiden Priscilla; 

Every sentence began or closed with the name of Priscilla, 

Till the treacherous pen, to which he confided the secret. 

Strove to betray it by singing atid shouting the name of Priscilla! 

Finally closing his book, with a bang ot the pondert)us cover. 

Sudden and loud as the sound ot a soldier grounding his musket, 

Thus to the \()ung man spake Miles Standish the Captain of Plymouth : 

"When you have finished yovu* work, I have something important to tell you. 

Be not howe\'er in haste ; I can wait ; I shall not be impatient I " 

Straightway Alden replied, as he folded the last ot his letters, 

I'ushing his papers aside, and giving respectful atrention : 

" Speak ; for whenever you speak, I am always ready to listen. 

Always ready to hear whatever pertains to Miles Staiuiish." 

Thereupon answered the Captain, embarrassed, and culling his phrases: 

" ' r is not good for a man to be alone, say the Scriptures. 

This 1 have said before, and again and again I repeat it; 

Every hour in the day, I think it, and feel it, and sa\' it. 

Since Rose Standish died, my life has been weary and dreary ; 

Sick at heart have 1 been, beyond the healing of friendship. 

Oft in mv lonely hours have 1 thought of the maitien Priscilla. 

She is alone in the world; her father and mother and brother 

Died in the winter together; I saw her going and coming. 

Now to the grave of the dead, and now to the bed of the dying, 

Patient, courageous, and strong, and said to myself, that if ever 

(6) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 





The loveliest maiden ot Hlvmoath " 



17) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 

There were angels on earth, as there are angels in heaven, 

Two have I seen and known; and the angel whose name is Priscilla 

Holds in my desolate life the place which the other abandoned. 

Long have I cherished the thought, but never have dared to reveal it. 

Being a coward in this, though valiant enough for the most part. 

Go to the damsel Priscilla, the loveliest maiden of Plymouth, 

Say that a blunt old Captain, a man not of words but of actions. 

Offers his hand and his heart, the hand and heart of a soldier. 

Not in these words, you know, but this in short is my meaning; 

I am a maker of war, and not a maker of phrases. 

You, who are bred as a scholar, can say it in elegant language, 

Such as you read in your books of the pleadings and wooings of lovers. 

Such as you think best adapted to win the heart of a maiden." 

When he had spoken, John Aldeii, the fair-haired, taciturn stripling, 

All aghast at his words, surprised, embarrassed, bewildered, 

Trying to mask his dismay by treating the subject with lightness, 

Trying to smile, and yet feeling his heart stand still in his bosom. 

Thus made answer and spake, or rather stammered than answered : 

"Such a message as that, I am sure I should mantjle and mar it; 

If you would have it well done, — I am only repeating your maxim, — 

You must do it yourself, you must not leave it to others ! " 

But with the air ot a man whom nothing can turn from his purpose, 

Gravely shaking his head, made answer the Captain of Plymouth : 

I ruly the maxim is good, and I do not mean to gainsay it; 
But we must use it discreetly, and not waste powder for nothing. 
Now, as I said before, I was never a maker of phrases. 
I can march up to a fortress and summon the place to surrender. 
But march up to a woman with such a proposal, I dare not. 

(8) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



I'm not afraid of bullets, nor shot from the mouth of a cannon, 

But of a thundering ' No ! ' point-blank from the mouth of a woman. 

That I confess I'm afraid of, nor am I ashamed to confess it ! 

So you must grant my request, for you are an elegant scholar. 

Having the graces of speech, and skill in the turning ot phrases. 

Though I have spoken thus lightly, yet deep is the feeling that prompts me; 

Surely you cannot refuse what I ask in the name of our friendship ! " 

Then made answer John Alden : " The name of friendship is sacred ; 

What you demand in that name, I have not the power to deny you 1 " 

So the strong will prevailed, subduing and moulding the gentler. 

Friendship prevailed over love, and Alden went on his errand. 

Crossing the brook at the ford, where it brawled over pebble and shallow. 




.wfe-r 






Crossing the brook at the lord, where it brawled over pebble and shallow " 



(9) 



THE COURTSHIP OF M ILES STANDISH 

Gathering still, as he went, the May-flowers blooming around him, 

Fragrant, filling the air with a strange and wonderful sweetness, 

Children lost in the woods, and co\'ered with lea\'es in their slumber. 

" Puritan flowers," he said, " and the type of Puritan maidens. 

Modest and simple and sweet, the \'ery type of Priscilla ! 

So 1 will take them to her; to Priscilla the May-flower of Plymouth, 

Modest and simple and sweet, as a parting gift will 1 fake them;" 

So through the Plymouth woods John Alden went on his errand; 

Came to an open space, and sa\\' the disk of the ocean. 

Heard, as he drew near the door, the musical voice of Priscilla 

Singing the hundredth Psalm, the grand old Puritan anthem, 

Music that Luther sang to the sacred \yorcis of the Psalmist, 

Full of the breath of the Lord, consoling and comforting man)'. 

Then, as he opened the door, he beheld the form of the maiden 

Seated beside her wheel, ajid the carded wool like a snow-drift 

Piled at her knee, her white hands feeding the ravenous spintile. 

While with her toot on the treadle she guided the wheel in its motion. 

She, the Puritan girl, in the solitude of the forest, 

Makitig the humble house and the modest apparel of home-spun 

Beautiful with her beauty, and rich with the wealth of her being! 

Over him rushed, like a wind that is keen and cold and relentless. 

Thoughts of what might have been, and the weight and woe of his errand; 

So he entered the house : and the hum of the wheel and the singing 

Suddenly ceased ; for Priscilla, aroused by his step on the threshold. 

Rose as he entered, and gave him her hand, in signal of welcome. 

Saying, " I knew it was you, when I heard your step in the passage ; 

For 1 was thinking of you, as I sat there singing and spinning." 

Awkward and dumb with delight, that a thoucrht of him had been mingled 

(to) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



c 




" He beheld the tbrm uf the niaiJeii seated beside her wheel " 

Thus in the sacred psahii, that came from the heart of the maiden, 

Silent before her he stood, and gave her the flowers for an answer, 

Finding no words for his thought. He remembereci that day in the winter. 

After the first great snow, when lie broke a path from the village. 

Reeling and plunging along through the drifts that encumbered the doorway. 

Stamping the snow from his feet as he entered the house, and Priscilla 

Laughed at his snowy locks, anci gave him a seat by the fireside. 

Grateful and jileased to know he had thought of her in the snow-storm. 

Had he but spoken then ! perhaps not in vain had he spoken; 

Now it was all too late; the golden moment had vanished! 



(!■) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STAN DISH 

So he stood there abashed, and gave her the flowers for an answer. 

Then they sat down and talked of the birds and the beautiful Spring-time, 

Talked of their friends at home, and the May Flower that sailed on the morrow. 

" I have been thinking all day," said gently the Puritan maiden, 

" Dreaming all night, and thinking all day, of the hedge-rows of England, — 

They are in blossom now, and the country is all like a garden; 

Thinking of lanes and fields, and the song of the lark and the linnet. 

Seeing the village street, and familiar faces of neighbors 

Going about as oi old, and stopping to gossip together, 

And, at the end of the street, the village church, with the ivy 

Climbing the old gray tower, and the quiet graves in the churchyard. 

Kind are the people I live with, and dear to me my religion ; 

Still my heart is so sad, that I wish myself back in Old England. 

You will say it is wrong, but I cannot help it: I almost 

Wish myself back in Old F^ngland, 1 feel so lonely and wretched." 

Thereupon answered the youth: — " Indeed I do not condemn you ; 

Stouter hearts than a woman's have quailed in this terrible winter. 

Yours is tender and trusting, and needs a stronger to lean on ; 

So 1 have come to you miw, Nuth an oft'er antl pi-ofl-'er of marriage 

Made by a good man and true, Miles Standish the Cajitain of Ply mouth ! ' 

Thus he delivered his message, the dexterous writer of letters, — 

Did not embellish the theme, nor array it in beautiful phrases. 

Hut came straight to the point, and blurted it out like a schoolboy ; 

Even the Captain himself could hardly have said it more bluntly. 

Mute with amazement and sorrow, Priscilla the Puritan maiden 

Looked into Alden's face, her eyes dilated with wonder. 

Feeling his words like a blow, that stunned her and rendered her speechless; 

Till at length she exclaimed, interrupting the ominous silence: 

(12) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES SIANDISH 

" If the great Captain of I'lynunith is so very eager to wed me, 

Why does he not come himself, and take the trouble to woo me? 

\t I am not worth the wooing, 1 surely am not worth the winning!" 

Then John Alden hegan explaining and smoothing the matter. 

Making it worse as he went, by saying the Captain was busy, — 

Had no time for such things; — such things! the words grating harshly 

Fell on the ear of Priscilla; and swift as a flash she made answer: 

" Has he no time for such things, as you call it, before he is marrieti, 

Would he be likely to find it, or make it, after the wedding? 

That is the way with you men ; you don't understand us, you cannot. 

When you have made up your minds, after thinking ot this one and that one, 

Choosing, selecting, rejecting, comparing one with another. 

Then you make known your desire, with abrupt and sudden avowal, 

And are ofFendeti and hurt, and indignant perhaps, that a woman 

Does not respond at once to a love that she never suspected, 

Does not attain at a bound the height to which you have been climbing. 

This is not right nor just: for surely a woman's affection 

Is not a thing to be asked for, and had for only the asking. 

When one is truly in love, one not only says it, but shows it. 

Had he but waited awhile, had he only showed that he loved me. 

Even this Captain of yours — who knows? — at last might have won me. 

Old and rough as he is; but now it never can happen." 

Still John Alden went on, unheeding the words of Priscilla, 

Urging the suit of his friend, explaining, persuading, expanding; 

Spoke of his courage and skill, and of all his battles in Elanders, 

How with the people of God he had chosen to suffer affliction. 

How, in return for his zeal, they had made him Captain of Plymouth; 

He was a man of honor, ot noble and generous nature; 

U3) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 

Though he was rough, he was kindly; she knew how during the winter 

He had attended the sick, with a hand as gentle as woman's; 

Somewhat hasty and hot, he could not deny it, and headstrong. 

Stern as a soldier might be, but hearty, and placable always. 

Not to be laughed at and scorned, because he \\as little of stature; 

For he was great of heart, magnanimous, courtly, courageous; 

Any woman in Plymouth, nay, any woman in England, 

Might be happy and proud to be called the wife of Miles Standish I 

But as he warmed and glowed, in his simple and eloquent language, 

Ouite forgetful of self, and full of the praise of his rival, 

Archly the maiden smiled, and, with eyes overrunning with laughter. 

Said, in a tremulous voice, " Why don't you speak for yourself, John?" 

Into the open air John Alden, perplexed and bewildered, 

Rushed like a man insane, and wandered alone by the sea-side; 

Fierce in his soul was the struggle and tumult of passions contending; 

Love triumphant and crowned, and friendship wounded and bleeding, 

" Is it my huilt," he said, " that the maiden has chosen between us? 

Is it my fault that he failed, — my fault that I am the \'ictor?" 

Shaiue and confusion of guilt, and abasement and self-condemnation. 

Overwhelmed him at once ; and he cried in the deepest contrition : 

" It hath displeased the Lord ! It is the temptation of Satan ! " 

Then, uplifting his head, he looked at the sea, and beheld there 

Dimly the shadowy form of the May IHower riding at anchor. 

Rocked on the rising tide, and ready to sail on the morrow. 

Still for a moment he stood, and listened, and stared at the vessel. 

Then went hurriedly on, as one who, seeing a phantom. 

Stops, then quickens his pace, and follows the beckoning shadow. 

Soon he entered his door, and found the redoubtable Captain 

(H) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 







" Whv don't you speak for yourself, John; 



(15) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILKS STAN DISH 

Sitting alone, and absorbed in the martial pages of Ca'sar. 

" Long have you been on your errand," he said with a cheery demeanor, 

Even as one who is waiting an answer, and fears not the issue. 

" Not far off is the house, although the woods are between us; 

But you have Hngered so long, that while you were going and coming 

I have fought ten battles and sacked and demolished a city. 

Come, sit down, and in order relate to me all that has happened." 

Then John Alden spake, and related the wondrous adventure, 

How he had seen Priscilla, and how he had sped in his courtship. 

Only smoothing a little, and softening down her refusal. 

But when he came at length to the words Priscilla had spoken, 

Words so tender and cruel: " Why don't you speak for yourself, John ? " 

Up leaped the Captain of Plymouth, and stamped on the floor, till his armor 

Clanged on the wall, where it hung, with a sound of sinister omen. 

All his pent-up wrath burst forth in a sudden explosion. 

Even as a hand-grenade, that scatters destruction around it. 

Wildly he shouted, and loud: "John Alden ! you have betrayed me! 

Me, Miles Standish, your friend ! have supplanted, defrauded, betrayed me ! 

One of my ancestors ran his sword through the heart of Wat Tyler; 

Who shall prevent me from running my own through the heart of a traitor? 

Yours is the greater treason, for yours is a treason to friendship ! 

You, who lived under my roof, whom I cherished and loved as a brother; 

You, who have fed at my board, and drunk at my cup, to whose keeping 

I have intrusted my honor, my thoughts the most sacred and secret, — 

You too, Brutus ! ah woe to the name of friendship hereafter! 

Brutus was Cresar's friend, and you were mine, but henceforward 

Let there be nothing between us save war, and implacable hatred ! " 

So spake the Captain of Plymouth, and strode about in the chamber, 

(i6) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES S T A N D I S H 

Chafing and choking with rage; like cords were the veins on his temples. 

But in the midst of his anger a man appeared at the doorway. 

Bringing in uttermost haste a message of urgent importance, 

Rumors of danger and war and hostile incursions of Indians! 

Straightway the choleric Captain strode wrathful away to the council. 

Found it already assembled, impatiently waiting; his comino;; 

Men in the middle of lite, austere and grave in deportment, 

Only one of them old, the hill that was nearest to heaven, 

Covered with snow, but erect, the excellent Elder of Plymouth. 

Near them was standing an Indian, in attitude stern and defiant. 

Naked down to the waist, and grini and ferocious in aspect ; 

While on the table before them was lying unopened a Bible, 

Ponderous, bound in leather, brass-studded, printed in Holland, 

And beside it outstretched the skin of a rattlesnake glittered, 

Filled, like a quiver, with arrows ; a signal and challenge ot warfare. 

Brought by the Indian, and speaking with arrowy tongues of defiance. 

This Miles Standish beheld, as he entered, and heard them debating 

What were an answer befitting the hostile message and menace. 

Then out spake Miles Standish, the stalwart Captain of Plymouth, 

Muttering deep in his throat, tor his voice was husky with anger, 

"What! do you mean to make war with milk and the water ot roses .^ 

Is it to shoot red squirrels you have your howitzer planted 

There on the roof of the church, or is it to shoot red devils ? 

Truly the only tongue that is understood by a savage 

Must be the tongue of fire that speaks from the mouth of the cannon ! 

Leave this matter to me, for to me by right it pertaineth. 

War is a terrible trade; but in the cause that is righteous, 

Sweet is the smell of powder ; and thus I answer the challenge ! " 

(17) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 




Figuri-.s ten, in the mist, niarcheii ^lo\\lv out ot the village 



1 hen troni the rattlesnake's skin, with ;i sudiien, c<intenijituoiis tresture, 
Jerking the Indian arrows, he filled it with jiowder and bidlets 
I" ull to the very jaws, and handed it back to the savage, 
Saying, in thundering tones: " Here, take it! this is )()ur answer! " 
just in the gray ot the dawn, as the mists uprose from the meadows. 

There was a stir and a sound in the slumbering village ot I'lvniduth ; 

Clanging and clicking ot arms, and the order imperati\'e, " I'^orward ! " 

Given in tone suppressed, a tramp of teet, and then silence. 

Figures ten, in the mist, marched slowly out of the \illage. 

Standish the stalwart it was, with eight of his valorous army. 

Led by their Indian guide, by Hobomok, the friend of the white men. 

(i8) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 

Many a mile had they marched, when at length the village of Plymouth 
Woke from its sleep, and arose, intent on its manifold labors. 
Sweet was the air and soft; and slowly the smoke from the chimneys 
Rose over roofs of thatch, and pointed steadily eastward; 
Men came forth from the doors, and paused and talked of the weather, 
Said that the wind had changed, and was blowing fair for the May Flower; 
Out of the sea rose the sun, and the billows rejoiced at his coming; 
Beautiful were his teet on the purple tops ot the mountains ; 
Beautiful on the sails ot the May Flower riding at anchor, 
Battered and blackened and worn by all the storms ot the winter. 
Then from their houses in haste came torth the Pilgrims ot i'lymouth. 
Men and women and children, all hurrying down to the sea-shore, 
Down to the Plymouth Rock, that had been to their teet as a door-step 
Into a world unknown, — the corner-stone of a nation ! 



■# 





Down to the Plvmouth Rock, that had been to their feet as a door-step ' 

(19) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES SIANDISH 




" Battered and blackened and worn by all the storms ot the winter" 

Meanwhile the Master alert, but with dignified air and important, 
Scanning with watchful eye the tide and the wind and the weather, 
Walked about on the sand; and the people crowded around him 
Saying a few last words, and enforcing his careful remembrance. 
Then, taking each by the hand, as if he were grasping a tiller. 
Into the boat he sprang, and in haste shoved off to his vessel, 
Glad in his heart to get rid of all this worry and flurry, 
Glad to be gone from a land of sand and sickness and sorrow, 
Short allowance ofv^ictual, and plenty of nothing but Gospel! 
Lost in the sound of the oars was the last farewell ot the Pilgrims. 
O strong hearts and true ! not one went back in the May Flower ! 
No, not one looked back, who had set his hand to this ploughing ! 



(.o) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 

Long in silence they watched the receding sail of the vessel, 

Much endeared to them all, as something living and human ; 

Then, as if filled with the spirit, and wrapt in a vision prophetic. 

Baring his hoary head, the excellent Elder of Plymouth 

Said, " Let us pray !" and they prayed, and thanked the Lord and took courage. 

So they returned to their homes; but Alden lingered a little, 

Musing alone on the shore, and watching the wash of the billows 

Round the base of the rock, and the sparkle and flash of the sunshine, 

Like the spirit of God, moving visibly over the waters. 

Thus for awhile he stood, and mused by the shore of the ocean. 

Thinking of many things, and most ot all of Priscilla ; 











** Long in silence they watched the receding sail of the vessel '* 



(21) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



^ 



ni> 




■' Baring his ho.ir\- head, the exxellent Elder ot Plymouth said, ' Let us pray ! ' " 

And as if thought had the power to draw to itself, like the loadstone, 

Whatsoever it touches, by subtile laws of its nature, 

Lo ! as he turned to depart, Priscilla was standing beside him. 

" Are you so much offended, you will not speak to me?" said she. 

" Am I so much to blame, that yesterday, when you were pleading 

Warmly the cause of another, my heart, impulsive and wayward. 

Pleaded your own, and spake out, forgetful perhaps of decorum? 

Certainly you can forgive me for speaking so frankly, for saying 

What I ought not to have said, yet now I can never unsay it; 

For there are moments in life, when the heart is so full of emotion 

That if by chance it be shaken, or into its depths like a pebble 

Drops some careless word, it overflows, and its secret. 

Spilt on the ground like water, can never be gathered together. 

(22) 



■ oil 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



Yesterday I was shocked, when I heard you speak of Miles Standish, 

Praising his virtues, transforming his very defects into virtues. 

Praising his courage and strength, and even his fighting in Flanders, 

As if by fighting alone you could win the heart of a woman, 

Quite overlooking yourself and the rest, in exalting your hero. 

Therefore I spake as 1 did, by an irresistible impulse. 

You will forgive me, I hope, for the sake of the friendship between us, 

Which is too true and too sacred to be so easily broken ! " 

Thereupon answered John Alden, the scholar, the friend of Miles Standish: 

" I was not angry with you, with myself alone I was angry. 

Seeing how badly I managed the matter I had in my keeping." 

" No ! " interrupted the maiden, with answer prompt and decisive ; 

" No ; you were angry with me, for speaking so frankly and freely. 

It was wrong, I acknowledge; for it is the fate of a woman 

Long to be patient and silent, to wait like a ghost that is speechless. 

Till some questioning voice dissolves the spell of its silence. 

Hence is the inner life of so many suffering women 

Sunless and silent and deep, like subterranean rivers 

Running through caverns of darkness, unheard, unseen, and unfruitful. 

Chafing their channels of stone, with endless and profitless murmurs." 

Thereupon answered John Alden, the young man, the lover of women: 

" Heaven forbid it, Priscilla; and truly they seem to me always 

More like the beautiful rivers that watered the garden of Eden, 

More like the river Euphrates, through deserts of Havilah flowing. 

Filling the land with delight, and memories sweet of the garden !" 

" Ah, by these words, I can see," again interrupted the maiden, 

" How very little you prize me, or care for what I am saying. 

When from the depths of my heart, in pain and with secret misgiving, 

(23) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



Frankly I speak to vou, asking for sympathy only and kindness, 

Straigiitway you take up my words, tliat are plain and direct and in earnest, 

Turn them away from their meaning, and answer with flattering phrases. 

This is not right, is not just, is not true to the best that is in you; 

P'or I know and esteem you, and feel that your nature is noble, 

Lifting mine up to a higher, a more ethereal level. 

Let us, then, be what we are, and speak what we think, and in all things 

Keep ourselves loyal to truth, and the sacred professions of friendship. 

It is no secret I tell you, nor am I ashamed to declare it: 

I have liked to be with you, to see you, to speak with you always. 

So I was hurt at your words, and a little affronted to hear you 

Urge me to marry your friend, though he were the Captain Miles Standish. 

For I must tell you the truth : much more to me is your friendship 

Than all the love he could give, were he twice the hero you think him." 

Then she extended her hand, and Alden, who eagerly grasped it. 

Felt all the wounds in his heart, that were aching and bleeding so sorely, 

Healed bv the touch of that hand, and he said, with a voice tull of feeling : 

" Yes, we must ever be friends; and of all who offer vou friendship 

Let me be ever the first, the truest, the nearest and dearest ! " 

Casting a farewell look at the glimmering sail of the May Flower, 

Distant, but still in sight, and sinking below the horizon. 

Homeward together they walked, with a strange, indefinite feeling. 

That all the rest had departed and left them alone in the desert. 

But, as thev went through the fields in the blessing and smile of the sunshine 

Lighter grew their hearts, and Priscilla said very archly : 

" Now that our terrible Captain has gone in pursuit of the Indians, 

Where he is happier far than he would be commanding a household, 

You may speak boldly, and tell me of all that happened between you, 

(24) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 




Casting a farewell look at the glimmering sail of the Mav Flower" 



When you returned last night, and said how ungrateful you found me." 

Thereupon answered John Alden, and told her the whole of the story, — 

Told her his own despair, and the direful wrath of Miles Standish 

Whereat the maiden smiled, and said between laughing and earnest, 

" He is a little chimney, and heated hot in a moment ! " 

But as he gently rebuked her, and told her how much he had suffered, — 

How he had even determined to sail that day in the May Flower, 

And had remained for her sake, on hearing the dangers that threatened, — 

All her manner was changed, and she said with a faltering accent, 

" Truly I thank you for this : how good you have been to me always ! " 

(25) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



Meanwhile the stalwart Miles Standish was marching steadily northward, 

Winding through forest and swamp, and along the trend ot the sea-shore, 

All day long, with hardly a halt, the fire of his anger 

Burning and crackling within, and the sidphurous odor ot powder 

Seeming more sweet to his nostrils than all the scents of the forest. 

Silent and moody he went, and much he revolved his discomfort ; 

He who was used to success, and to easy victories always, 

Thus to be flouted, rejected, and laughed to scorn by a maiden, 

Thus to be mocked and betrayed by the friend whom most he had trusted ! 

Ah! 'twas too much to be borne, and he fretted and chafed in his armor! 

" I alone am to blame," he muttered, " for mine was the folly. 

What has a rough old soldier, grown grim and gray in the harness, 

Used to the camp and its ways, to do with the wooing ot maidens? 

'T was but a dream, — let it pass, — let it vanish like so many others! 

What I thought was a flower, is only a weed, and is worthless ; 

Out of my heart will I pluck it, and throw it away, and henceforward 

Be but a fighter of battles, a lover and wooer of dangers! " 

Thus he revolved in his mind his sorry defeat and discomfort. 

Month after month passed away, and in Autumn the ships of the merchants 

Came with kindred and friends, with cattle and corn for the Pilgrims. 

All in the village was peace; but at times the rumor ot warfare 

Filled the air with alarm, and the apprehension ot danger. 

Bravely the stalwart Miles Standish was scouring the land with his forces, 

Waxing valiant in fight and defeating the alien armies. 

Till his name had become a sound ot fear to the nations. 

Anger was still in his heart, but at times the remorse and contrition 

Which in all noble natures succeed the passionate outbreak, 

Came like a rising tide, that encounters the rush of a river, 

(26) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 

Staying its current awhile, hut making it bitter and brackish. 
Meanwhile Alcien at home liad built him a new habitation, 
Solid, substantial, of timber rough-hewn from the firs ot the forest. 
Wooden-barred was the cioor, and the root was covered with rushes ; 
Latticed the windows were, anci the window-panes were of paper, 
Oiled to admit the light, while wind and rain were excluded. 
There too he dug a well, and around it planted an orchard : 
Still may be seen to this ilav some trace of the well and the orchard. 
Oft when his labor was finished, with eager feet would the dreamer 
Follow the pathway that ran through the woods to the house of Priscilla. 
So as she sat at her wheel one afternoon in the Autumn, 
Alden, who opposite sat, and was watching her dexterous fingers, 
As if the thread she was spinning were that ot his lite and his fortune, 
After a pause in their talk, thus spake to the sound of the spindle. 
"Truly, Priscilla," he said, "when I see you spinning and spinning, 
Never idle a moment, but thrit'ty and thoughtful ot others. 
Suddenly you are transformed, are visibly changed in a moment ; 
You are no longer Priscilla, but Bertha the Beautiful Spinner." 
Here the light foot on the treadle grew swifter and swifter; the spindle 
Uttered an angry snr.rl, ami tlie thread snapped short in her fingers; 
While the impetuous speaker, not heeding the mischief, continued: 
" You are the beautiful IJertha, the spinner, the c|ueen of Helvetia; 
She whose story J read at a stall in the streets of Southampton, 
Who, as she rode on her palfrey, o'er valley and meadow and mountain, 
Ever was spinning her thread trom a distaff fixed to her saddle. 
She was so thrifty and good, that her name passed into a proverb. 
So shall it be with your own, when the spinning-wheel shall no longer 
Hum in the house of the farmer, and fill its chambers with music. 

. (27) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



Then shall the mothers, reproving, relate how it was in their childhood, 

Praising the good old times, and the days of Priscilla the spinner! " 

Straight uprose from her wheel the beautiful Puritan maiden, 

Pleased with the praise of her thrift from him whose praise was the sweetest. 

Drew from the reel on the table a snowy skein ot her spinning. 

Thus making answer, meanwhile, to the flattering phrases of Alden: 

" Come, you nuist not be idle; if I am a pattern for housewives. 

Show yourself equally worthy ot being the model ot husbands. 

Hold this skein on your hands, while I wind it, ready f)r knitting; 

Then who knows but hereafter, when fashions have changed and the manners, 

Fathers may talk to their sons of the s^ood old times ot John Alden ! " 

Thus, with a jest and a laugh, the skein on his hatids she adjusted, 

He sitting awkwardly there, with his arms extended betore him. 

She standing graceful, erect, and winding the thread trom his tingers, 

Sometimes chiding a little his clumsy manner ot holding. 

Sometimes touching his hands, as she disentangled expertly 

Twist or knot in the yarn, unawares — for how coidd she help it? — • 

Sending electrical thrills through every nerve in his body. 

Lo ! in the midst of this scene, a breathless messenger entered. 

Bringing in hurry and heat the terrible news trom the \'illage. 

Yes; Miles Standish was dead ! — an hulian had brought them the tidings, — 

Slain by a poisoned arrow, shot down in the front of the battle. 

Into an ambush beguiled, cut off with the whole of his forces; 

All the town would be burned, and all the people be murdereii ! 

Such were the tidings ot evil that burst on the hearts of the hearers. 

Silent and statue-like stood Priscilla, her face looking backward 

Still at the tace of the speaker, her arms uplifted in horror; 

Ijut John Alden, upstarting, as if the barb of the arrow 

(2 8) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 

Piercing the heart of his friend had struck his own, and had sundered 
Once and forever the bonds that held him bound as a captive, 
Wild with excess of sensation, the awful delight of his freedom. 
Mingled with pain and regret, unconscious of what he was doing. 
Clasped, almost with a groan, the motionless form of Priscilla, 
Pressing her close to his heart, as forever his own, and exclaiming;: 
" Those whom the Lord hath united, let no man put them asunder ! " 
So these lives that had run thus tar in separate channels, 
Rushed together at last, and one was lost in the other. 
Forth from the curtain of cloutis, tronr the tent of purple and scarlet. 
Issued the sun, the great High-Priest, in his garments resplendent. 
This was the weddins; morn of Priscilla the I'uritan maiden. 




;i.'ir?v>..; . ', -laa- 



3C5E^V 



" Forth from the curtain of clouds, from the tent of purple and scarlet, issued the sun " 



(29) 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 



Friends were assembled together; the Elder and Magistrate also 

Graced the scene with their presence, and stood like the Eaw and the Gospel 

One with the sanction of earth and one with the blessing ot heaven. 

Simple and brief was the wedding, as that ot Ruth and ot Boay. 

Softly the youth and the maiden repeated the words ot betrothal, 

Taking each other for husband and wife in the Magistrate's presence, 

After the Puritan way, and the laudable custom of Holland. 

Fervently then, and devoutly, the excellent Elder of Plymouth 

Prayed for the hearth and the home, that were foundctl that day in affection. 

Eo! when the service was ended, a form appeared on the threshold. 

Clad in armor of steel, a sombre and sorrowful figure! 

Long had it stood there unseen, a guest uninvited, unwelcomed; 

Once it had lifted its hand, and moved its lips, but was silent. 

As if an iron will haii mastered the fleeting intention. 

But when were ended the troth and the prayer and the last benediction, 

Into the room it strode, and the people beheld with amazement 

Bodily there in his armor Miles Standish, the Captain of I'lymouth ! 

Grasping the bridegroom's hand, he said with emotion, " Forgive me! 

I have been angry and hurt, — too long have I cherished the feeling; 

I have been cruel and hard, but now, thank God! it is ended. 

Never so much as now was Miles Standish the friend ot John Alden." 

Thereupon answered the bridegroom: " Let all he forgotten between us, — 

All save the dear, old friendship, and that shall grow older and dearer ! " 

Then the Captain advanced, and, bowing, saluted Priscilla, 

Wishing her joy of her wedding, and loudly lauding her husband. 

Then he said with a smile: " I should have remembered the adage, — 

If you would be well served, you must serve yourselt, and moreover, 

No man can gather cherries in Kent at the season ot Christmas ! " 



THE COITRTSHIP OF MILES STANDISH 




Ctipyright, 1900, New England Mutual Lite Insurance Coinpany. 

" Lo ! when the service was ended, a form appeared on the threshold " 

Great was the people's amazement, and greater yet their rejoicing, 

Thus to behold once more the sun-burnt face of their Captain, 

Whom they had mourned as dead; and they gathered and crowded about him, 

Eager to see him and hear him, forgetful of bride and ot bridegroom, 

Ouestioning, answering, laughing, and each interrupting the other. 

Till the good Captain declared, being quite overpowered and bewildered. 

He had rather by far break into an Indian encampment, 

Than come again to a wedding to which he had not been invited. 

Meanwhile the bridegroom went forth and stood with the bride at the doorway. 

Breathing the perfumed air of that warm and beautiful morning. 

(30 



THE COURTSHIP OF MILES STAN DISH 

Touched with autumnal tints, but lonely and sad in the sunshine, 

Lay extended hetore them the land of toil and privation ; 

There were the graves of the dead, and the barren waste of the sea-shore, 

There the himiliar fields, the groves of pine, and the meadows; 

But to their eyes transfigured, it seemed as the Garden of Eden, 

Filled with the presence ot God, whose voice was the sound of the ocean. 

Then from a stall near at hand, amid exclamations of wonder, 

Alden the thoughtful, the careful, so happy, so proud of Priscilla, 

Brought out his snow-white steer, obeying the hand of its master, 

Led by a cord that was tied to an iron ring in its nostrils. 

Covered with crimson cloth, and a cushion placed for a saddle. 

She should not walk, he said, through the dust and heat of the noonday; 

Nay, she shouKi ride like a cjueen, not plod along like a peasant. 

Placing her hand on the cushion, her foot in the hand of her husband, 

Gayly, with joyous laugh, Priscilla mounted her palfrey. 

Onward the bridal procession now moved to their new habitation, 

Happ\- husband and wife, and trientls conversing together. 

Like a picture it seemed ot the primiti\'e, pastoral ages. 

Fresh with the youth ot the world, and recalling Rebecca and Isaac, 

Old and yet ever new, and simple and beautiful always. 

Love immortal and voimg in the endless succession of lovers. 

So through the Plymouth woods passed onward the bridal procession. 






(3- 



1-IBRARy OP 

ifii 



